Employee Shot, Killed in Victorville Convenience Store Parking Lot

The employee had just finished his shift when he was shot in the store's parking lot

A clerk who had just finished his shift was shot and killed in a Victorville convenience store parking lot late Sunday night amid suspicious circumstances, and authorities are searching for the attacker.

The shooting occurred shortly before 11 p.m. at an AM/PM store at Civic and Roy Rogers drives (map).

The victim, indentified as 26-year-old Daniel Olivera, was pronounced dead at the scene. He was speaking with a security guard outside the store at the time of the shooting, when he fell to the ground suddenly, according to investigators.

"He said he would be back at 10:30, expect him at 11 and have his plate ready -- and that’s what I did," said his girlfriend Danielle Cruz, crying at the scene on Monday. "I was looking outside the window till 2 o’clock. And he never came home, never came home."

There were many witnesses in the area when Olivera collapsed, and some said they thought they heard a "pop" or gunfire, San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department investigators said. But others heard nothing, and no one saw a shooter, officials said.

"The circumstances are very strange," said Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Cindy Bachman. "There’s no altercation going on and suddenly he’s shot."

It's possible the Olivera was shot at from outside the parking lot, investigators said. They combed an open field across the street for evidence on Monday.

Family members confirmed that a video posted to YouTube showed an image of Olivera, as seen at right. With his girlfriend, Olivera had four children, the youngest of whom is a newborn, family members said.

Olivera is a hip-hope artist who is not involved in gangs, they said.

Victorville is about 80 miles northeast of Los Angeles.

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